Pedestrians left to suffer

Trenches dug by Dhaka Wasa to replace sewerage pipelines remain a nightmare for people of Rayerbazar area. Photo: Shawkat JamilTawfique Ali

Successive governments and Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) have always deprived pedestrians of their basic amenities even though they constitute half the commuters in the capital.

DCC entrusted with providing facilities to pedestrians has made it a norm to let Dhaka footpaths remain occupied with illegal structures, car parking, makeshift shops and construction materials, said experts.

DCC has only a 390-kilometre long footpath while it has 1900 kilometres of roads including major arterial roads, alleys and lanes, said officials.

A total of 52-foot over-bridges for pedestrians in the city remain unused, as the pedestrians don't prefer to use them.

There are only four underpasses at Gulistan intersection, Gabtoli bus terminal, Sayedabad (Dhalpur) and Karwan Bazar. Except for the underpass at Sayedabad the rest are lying in dilapidated state.

DCC gets a block allocation of Tk 2.5 crore from the government for repairs to the roads every fiscal year. Only a small fraction of it is spent on footpaths.

It, however, sometimes works with donor funds to improve facilities for city pedestrians.

Mainly DCC and Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk) are responsible for constructing roads and providing other facilities to pedestrians including pavements in the city.

Dr M Rahmatullah, a noted transport-planning expert, said, “Pedestrians in Dhaka city are forced to take a carefree walk on the city streets only due to inadequate sidewalks.

He said pedestrians also remain at risk because of lack of human care among the drivers.

At least 50 percent of the total city commuters go to their workplaces on foot, said Prof Nazrul Islam, an urban researcher and currently chairman of University Grants Commission (UGC).

“All the footpaths must be freed completely from illegal occupancy and encroachment,” said Islam.

According to Prof Islam, approximately one crore people live in the DCC area (central city) and around 90 to 95 percent of the poor and low-income people make their journey to workplaces on foot.

Prof Jubayer-bin-Alam of Civil Engineering Department of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet) who is working on a British Council-sponsored study on Sustainable Transport for Urban Poor said a total of 12 lakh out of 20 lakh garment workers go to their workplaces on foot in the central part of the city.

It is an offence to destroy pavements at will to make way for houses, he said, adding that no government agencies prevent such acts.

Maruf Rahman, project officer of Transport Policy Programme of WBB Trust, said that existing traffic signals are not pedestrian-friendly. People usually feel discouraged to use foot over-bridges. Moreover, physically disabled, elderly people, children and women have no alternative to foot over-bridges.

“Dhaka Integrated Transport Study (DITS) reported in 1997 that 60 percent of the total commuters move on foot,” he said, “but the Strategic Transport Plan (STP) showed it only at 14 percent.

The 20-year STP approved two years back gave priority to pedestrians and proposed to pursue the Pedestrian First Policy but it earmarked only Tk 70 crore for developing pedestrian facilities out of Tk 36000 crore (5.2 billion US Dollars) proposed investment.

Prof Jubayer termed it ridiculous and said that 60 percent share of the pedestrians in 1997 fell suddenly down to 14 percent in 2005 with no such tangible development for them.

Sultana Akhtar Sumi, a 20-year student of Narayanganj Art College, died on April 3 as she stepped on a live wire and fell off the under-construction footbridge near Shishu Park at Shahbagh intersection.

A journalist died at Bangla Motors intersection while crossing the road in 2005.

A Dhaka University student Shammee Akhter Happy was crushed to death by a speeding bus while crossing Shahbagh intersection in 2005.

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, chairman of the parliamentary standing committee on the communications ministry, said that most of the existing footpaths are illegally occupied.

“City footpaths have never been under government control,” he said, adding: “We face strong resistance whenever we try to free them from occupants.”

He said that many foot over-bridges were set up without any proper plan and the committee would examine how those expensive structures were installed.

The committee will sit on August 27 and raise the issue of pedestrian facilities, he added.

DCC Town Planner Sirajul Islam said, “It is unfortunate and unlike other countries that pedestrians don't get priority in transport planning in our country.”

Despite repeated attempts DCC Mayor Sadeq Hossain Khoka was not available for his opinion.